SAMPLE ONE-URBAN CRIME DRAMA FIRST-PERSON NARRATIVE (MALE/MEMOIR):

 

One of my side jobs in college was working for a bank collection agency that dealt only in automobiles. My friend “G” worked there and put in a good word for me. “G” was someone I knew since we were kids, a close friend of the family. He was tight with my brother and became a strong part of the Huxtable clan over the years. As a result, I became the ninth person added to the all-star team of customer service reps.

The office was a tight space crammed with desks, telephones and aging computer equipment. It was a place that was constantly buzzing with ringing phones and guys bustling back and forth (sort of like the stock market floor of car delinquency). The job was simple- do collections and answer the phones.

My boss, the auto broker, who went by the name “Uncle Larry”, came to me one afternoon with a question. He wanted to know if I could be of some assistance to a female customer of his. Thinking nothing of it, I said “sure, what can I do?”
He told me this woman wanted to trade in her car but was delinquent on her last few payments. What he needed me to do was cover her payments so she could trade in her car.

“Uncle Larry” then handed me a couple of bad checks and explained to me that the processing time for the bank would be several days. In the meantime, that would give his customer time to recoup her losses and come up with the money. Even if the checks bounced that still would give her time to get her money up to speed, even though it would be a higher amount. So I entered the check numbers into the database and for the time being erased her delinquency status for the amount she owed. After I hit the ENTER button I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.

The situation worked out in the end. The woman was able to cover the bad checks and get another car. And Uncle Larry was very pleased with my performance. From then on I became his go-to guy for assistance with all the “hookups.”

One day a female customer called up the office complaining about her car and wanted to get a new one, but she was denied for a loan by the bank. Now she was hoping to work something out. The guy a couple desks over answered the phone and began going back and forth with her. Seeing the level of frustration rising and his inability to handle the situation, I signaled for him to transfer the call over to my line. I put on my smoothest voice, listened to her dilemma and told her that I could help. “Not a problem.” I crooned, swiveling my office chair over to the computer. I pulled up her account, cleared her delinquency status and in return she paid me 300 dollars.  I then called Uncle Larry to help her get another car and that was that. The easy money planted a seed in me.

With the success of that situation, I began to ponder the idea of contracting for myself  instead of simply “hooking up” Larry’s people for free...